Serving tray for automobiles



.Fuiy 15 1924. 1,501,116

A. M. INGE A SERVING TRAY FOR AUTOMOBILES Filed March 15. 192:2

a V ,Z INVENTOR Ufa/Mrs Patented duty 15, 1924.

ATENT orrics.

ARTHUR MONTGOMERY INGE, OF MEMFEIS, TENNESSEE, ASSIGNOR F ONE-FOURTH TO WILLIAM J. BACON, ONE-FOURTH TO L. D. BEJ'ACH, AND ONE-FOURTH T0 TYLER MCLAINQ ALL 0F MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE.

SERVING TRAY FOR AUTOMOBILES.

, Application filed March 15, 1922'. Serial No. 548,884.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR M. INGE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of.Memphis, inthe county of Shelby and State of Tennessee, have made certain new and useful Improvements in Serving Trays for Automobiles, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates generally to serving trays, and more particularly to serving trays for automobiles, my object being the provision of an apparatus which may be positioned across the upper "forward portions of the automobile seats and which may have supporting engagement with the upper edges of the automobile body and at the same time, a tray, which, when removed from operative position will necessitate but small storage s ace.

More articu arly, my invention purposes a tray w ich is in length but equal to a portion of the distance between the automobile sides, having a down-turned lip at one end and having a complementary ll-shaped supporting frame w ich side arms are telescoped 1n lengthwise tubular bearings of the tray and whose cross bar is bent to a downward ofi'set to enga e the opposite side of metal with rolled side edges an the vehicle body.

pulling the supporting frame entirely against further withdrawal in the .outer e ective position to prevent its accidental displacement in use. i

In the accompanying drawing illustrating my pnresent invention and forming a part of t 's specification Fi re 1 is a perspective view illustrating e practical application of my invention; Figure 2 is a perspective view of my improved tray with the parts in collapsed position for storage;

Figure 3 is a cross section taken on the line 33 of Figure 2, and,

Figure 4 is an enlarged partial longitudinal section through certain of the parts with the supporting frame extended.

Referring now to these fi res, my invention purposes a tray .orta Is for automobile use, of the rectangular form shown at 10, preferably constructed of stamped sheet flanged cans of a simple efiec- I tive nature are also provided to avold' ends, the latter indicated at 11. At one end the flange 11 has a down-turned lip 12.

The rolled side edges 13 form tubular bearings for the arallel spaced side bars 14 of a U-shape supporting frame, the

cross bar 15 of which frame 1s downwardly offset by virtue of bends in the side rods adjacent to the cross bar, as articularly seen in Figure 2, so that this ownwardly oflset cross bar forms ineifect an engaging lip which may slip over the opposite side of the upper edge of an automobile body 16, to that which is engaged by the depending end lip 12 of the tray 10, as particularly seen in Figure 1.

The free ends of the side rods 14 which are clearly slidable in the tubular side channels of-the tray formed by the rolled side edges 13, have slotted inner ends, the slots 17 of each rod serving to support a pivoted gravity latch 18, as-seen in Fig. 4. Each latch is pivoted on a cross pin 19 and has a rounded hook 20 at one end, its opposite end being of suflicient weight to rock this hook into a slot 21 of the respective rolled side edge 13 of the tray when, during outward movement of the supporting frame,

the said ends of the latch respectively move opposite the slot 21 and a slot 22 of the respective rolled edge into the latter of which the weighted end of the latch moves. This gravity latch thus operates to prevent complete withdrawal of the supporting frame and rovides for locking the same against acci ental displacement with respect to the ure 1 so that the apparatus when in use cannot collapse or fall at the center,

It is obvious that in the efiective position the extended side rods of the supporting frame may form a support for a box or boxes and the like from which edibles are removed and placed on the tray 10, and it is further obvious that when removed fi'om the o po'site position the sup orting frame may lie freely shifted towar the tray 10 to the collapsed position of Fig. 2, the side rods telescoping into the tubular side channels of thetray for practically the full .tray in the efiective position shown in Figlength of the latter without interference on I claim A serving tray for automobiles havin a rectangular body provided with rolled slde edges forming tubular channels, and with flanged ends one of which has a down-turned engaging lip, a U-shaped supportin frame including side rods slidably dlspose within the tubular channels of the tray, and a cross bar on the outer ends of the side rods, the latter of which is downwardly deflected to form an engaging lip and relativel enga ing means carrie by the inner en s of t e side rods and the tray to secure the supporting frame in the extended position against complete withdrawal of the siderods from the channels,wsaid means including gravity latch members pivotally mounted inter-:

mediate the ends thereof within slots in the inner ends of the side rods said members having upper inturned hooks arranged to enter slots m the upper surfaces of the rolled side edges of the tra and having their opositc ends weighte and adapted to enter ower slots of the side edges of the tray offset. longitudinally with res ct to the said 25 upper slots thereof, as descri ed. I

ARTHUR MONTGOMERY INGE. 

